Integrated stowage bin assembly

ABSTRACT

A stowage bin assembly includes a bin bucket assembly having a bin bucket which includes at least one sidewall, the at least one sidewall including a notch and the at least one sidewall having an interior surface. The stowage bin assembly also includes at least one hinge assembly. The at least one hinge assembly includes a housing which is received in the notch, the housing having an interior surface, wherein the interior surface of the housing is substantially flush with the interior surface of the at least one sidewall when the housing of the at least one hinge assembly is received in the notch. The stowage bin assembly also includes a stowage bin door pivotably coupled to the bin bucket assembly via the at least one hinge assembly, the stowage bin door moveable between an open position and a closed position. Related components, assemblies, and devices are also provided.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present disclosure generally relates to aircraft stowage bin assemblies.

Description of the Related Art

Transportation vehicles, such as airplanes, for example, typically include overhead storage compartments to allow passengers to store luggage, equipment, and other types of payload. The overhead storage compartments comprise overhead stowage bin assemblies. The overhead stowage bin assemblies are typically arranged to be above the passenger seats located in an aircraft's cabin. Thus, overhead stowage bin assemblies are often positioned at outboard ends of the left and right sides of the fuselage above the outboard cabin seats, and at the center of the fuselage, above the center cabin seats.

The stowage bin assemblies generally include bin buckets that are pivotably coupled to stowage bin doors. The stowage bin doors are configured to pivotably move between open and closed positions. The stowage bin doors pivotably rotate relative to respective pivot axes that are substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the fuselage, i.e., an axis that runs parallel to the forward-aft direction of the fuselage. The pivotable movement of the stowage bin doors is facilitated through hinges and various latch mechanisms. In particular, hinges typically protrude outwardly from a wall of the bin bucket or other attaching structure to which they are attached. For example, in some instances, hinges or similar structures about which the stowage bin door pivotably rotates protrude outwardly from an inside surface of a sidewall of the bin bucket. Such hinges, however, reduce compactness of the stowage bin assemblies, reduce storage capacity of the bin buckets, and contribute to increased weight of the stowage bin assemblies.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partial, perspective view of an integrated stowage bin assembly, according to one example embodiment, with a stowage bin door removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 2 is a partial, perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1, with stowage bin doors removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 3 is another partial, perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1, with stowage bin doors and some of the hinge assemblies removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 4 is a partial, skewed side perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1 as viewed from an inside of the integrated stowage bin assembly, with stowage bin doors removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 5 is a partial, skewed side perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1 as viewed from an outside of the integrated stowage bin assembly, with stowage bin doors removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 6 is another partial, skewed front perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1 as viewed from an inside of the integrated stowage bin assembly, with stowage bin doors removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a hinge assembly of FIG. 1, with certain components removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 8 is a skewed perspective view of the hinge assembly of FIG. 1, with certain components removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 9 is another partial, skewed side perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1 as viewed from an inside of the integrated stowage bin assembly, with stowage bin doors and a housing of another hinge assembly of FIG. 1 removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 10 is another partial, skewed side perspective view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 1 as viewed from an inside of the integrated stowage bin assembly, with certain components removed for clarity of illustration and description.

FIG. 11 is a perspective of an integrated stowage bin assembly, according to one example embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a side view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is a side perspective, partially exploded view of the integrated stowage bin assembly of FIG. 11.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Various embodiments of integrated stowage bin assemblies described herein improve manufacturing and assembling efficiencies, reduce weight footprint, and provide robust and compact form factors. For example, in one embodiment, a stowage bin assembly can be summarized as including a bin bucket assembly including a bin bucket having at least one sidewall, the at least one sidewall including a notch and the at least one sidewall having an interior surface; and at least one hinge assembly. The at least one hinge assembly can include a housing which is received in the notch, the housing having an interior surface, wherein the interior surface of the housing is substantially flush with the interior surface of the at least one sidewall when the housing of the at least one hinge assembly is received in the notch. The stowage bin assembly also includes a stowage bin door pivotably coupled to the bin bucket assembly via the at least one hinge assembly, the stowage bin door moveable between an open position and a closed position.

For example, in another embodiment, a hinge assembly that pivotably couples a stowage bin door to a stowage bin bucket assembly can be summarized as including a housing, a housing cover plate that couples to the housing, an interior cavity disposed between the housing and the housing cover, and a self-opening mechanism disposed in the interior cavity. The self-opening mechanism can be configured to counteract a gravitational torque applied by the stowage bin door when the stowage bin door moves between an open position and a closed position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, certain specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of various disclosed embodiments. However, one skilled in the relevant art will recognize that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of these specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures associated with stowage bin assemblies have not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring descriptions of the embodiments.

Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the specification and claims which follow, the word “comprise” and variations thereof, such as “comprises” and “comprising,” are to be construed in an open, inclusive sense, that is, as “including, but not limited to.”

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. It should also be noted that the term “or” is generally employed in its sense including “and/or” unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.

FIGS. 1 through 10 illustrate an integrated stowage bin assembly 10, according to one example embodiment. As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3, the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 includes a bin bucket assembly 12 and a pair of hinge assemblies 14 a, 14 b. In general, the bin bucket assembly 12 is hingedly coupled to a stowage bin door 13 via the hinge assemblies 14 a, 14 b. For example, FIG. 1 illustrates the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 having one stowage bin door 13, with another adjacent stowage bin door 13 removed for clarity of illustration and description. FIGS. 2-3 illustrate the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 with both stowage bin doors 13 removed for clarity of illustration and description. The stowage bin door(s) 13 are hingedly coupled to the bin bucket assembly 12 via the hinge assemblies 14 a, 14 b. It should further be noted that a hinge assembly 14 a located adjacent to the hinge assembly 14 b is not show for clarity of illustration and description. The bin bucket assembly 12 includes sidewalls 15, upper wall 16, lower wall 17, rear wall 18, and a partition 19 that partitions the integrated stowage bin assembly 10. In some embodiments, however, the partition 19 can comprise, in lieu of, or in addition to, another sidewall of the bin bucket assembly 12. For example, in some embodiments, an overall length of the integrated stowage assembly 10 may be less than an overall length of the illustrated integrated stowage bin assembly 10, such that the partition 19 is replaced with another sidewall 15.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 10, in particular, FIGS. 3 and 4, one or more of the sidewalls 15 includes a notch 20 that is sized and shaped to receive the hinge assembly 14 a. For example, FIG. 3 illustrates the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 including a pair of notches 20 disposed in the sidewalls 15. In particular, the notch 20 is sized and shaped in a manner such that the hinge assembly 14 a is seated substantially flush with an interior surface of the sidewall 15, such that any protrusion of the hinge assembly 14 a is reduced and/or minimized. The hinge assembly 14 b is coupled to the partition 19. The notches 20 of each sidewall 15 are sized and shaped to receive the hinge assemblies 14 a. In implementations where the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 includes a bin bucket assembly 12 with another sidewall in lieu of, or in addition to, the partition 19, a similar notch can be provided in such a sidewall, to which the hinge assembly 14 b can be coupled in a similar manner.

The hinge assembly 14 a is a mirror image of the hinge assembly 14 b. Thus, for the sake of clarity of description and illustration, the hinge assembly 14 a will be described in additional detail, although it should be understood, upon review of the present disclosure, that similar features are included in the hinge assembly 14 b.

With continued reference to FIGS. 1-10, the hinge assembly 14 a includes a housing 22 and an optional support plate 23. The housing 22 is sized and shaped to receive a self-opening mechanism 24 and a damper 26. The housing 22 after being received in the notch 20 is coupled to the sidewall 15 of the bin bucket assembly 12 via the optional support plate 23. The housing 22 includes an interior surface 50 that substantially aligns with an interior surface 51 of the sidewall 15. In this manner, the hinge assembly 14 a when seated in the notch 20 of the sidewall 15 provides a compact integrated stowage bin assembly 10 that increases storage capacity of the bin buckets, and contributes to reduced weight of the stowage bin assemblies.

Again, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 5, the optional support plate 23 is relatively thin to minimize the protrusion of the integrated stowage bin assembly 10. The optional support plate 23 includes a plurality of base apertures 53 that are disposed around a periphery of the optional support plate 23 and are sized and shaped to couple the hinge assembly 14 a to the sidewall 15 via one or more plate fasteners 54. The optional support plate 23 also includes hinge apertures 55 that are shaped as slots to allow some positional movement of the hinge assembly 14 a when coupling to the hinge assembly 14 a via hinge fasteners 56, which are covered via a support plate cover 57 (not shown in FIG. 5 for clarity of description and illustration). As described above, the support plate 23 is optional. Thus, in embodiments of the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 that exclude the support plate 23, the hinge assembly 14 a may be directly coupled to the sidewall 15 via one or more fasteners.

The housing 22 includes a coupling flange 28 that fixedly couples the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 to the stowage bin door 13, such that the stowage bin door 13 can rotate between open and closed positions. A housing cover plate 60 is sized and shaped to couple to the housing 22 around a periphery of the housing 22. When the housing 22 is coupled to the housing cover plate 60, such an arrangement defines an interior cavity within which certain components of the hinge assembly 14 a are located.

FIG. 7 illustrates the hinge assembly 14 a with the housing cover plate 60 removed for the sake of clarity of description and illustration. FIG. 8 illustrates the hinge assembly 14 a with the housing 22 and the housing cover plate 60 removed for the sake of clarity of description and illustration. Again, for the sake of clarity of description and illustration, only hinge assembly 14 a is described in further detail. As illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, the hinge assembly 14 a includes the damper 26 that is sized and shaped to control the rate of pivotable movement of the stowage bin door 13 between open and closed positions. Although one embodiment of the damper 26 is illustrated herein, in other embodiments, other dampers known in the art can be included in the hinge assembly 14 a. The self-opening mechanism 24 is generally configured to provide a variable force that varies proportional to torque of the stowage bin door 13 that varies based, in part, on the variable gravitational torque of the stowage bin door 13. In particular, the stowage bin door 13 takes non-linear, radial paths R1, R2, respectively, as the stowage bin door 13 moves from and between the open and closed positions. As a result of the non-linear, radial paths R1, R2, the gravitational torque applied by the stowage bin door 13 results in a lateral force component that is applied toward or away from a pivot axis 29 depending on whether the stowage bin door 13 is moving from a closed to an open position or vice versa. In other words, a center of gravity of the stowage bin door 13 varies due to the non-linear, radial paths R1, R2. The self-opening mechanism 24 is configured to counteract such lateral force components by providing a variable counteracting force that can vary based on the non-linear, radial path of the stowage bin door 13.

In particular, the self-opening mechanism 24 includes a rotary crank 30, a biasing device 31, and rotary pin 32. The rotary crank 30 includes a pivot pin aperture 33 which is sized and shaped to pivotably couple the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 to the stowage bin door 13. For example, in some implementations, the stowage bin door 13 can be coupled to the hinge assembly 14 a via a pivot pin 70 (FIG. 4) that is pivotably received in the pivot pin aperture 33. More particularly, the pivot pin aperture 33 defines the pivot axis 29 about which the stowage bin door 13 pivotably rotates between open and closed positions. The biasing device 31 includes a first connecting element 34, a spring 35, e.g., a compression spring, and a second connecting element 36. One end of the spring 35 is coupled to the first connecting element 34 and the other end of the spring 35 is coupled to the second connecting element 36. The first connecting element 34 includes a shaft that extends through the spring 35 and is coupled to the housing 22 via a first pin 38. The second connecting element 36 is coupled to the housing 22 via the rotary pin 32. The rotary pin 32 also couples the biasing device 31 to the rotary crank 30 via the rotary pin 32.

In particular, the rotary crank 30 includes an opening member 40 that includes an opening aperture 41 that is substantially shaped like a slot. The opening aperture 41 receives the rotary pin 32, and is sized and shaped to allow the rotary crank 30 to rotatably move therein as the spring 35 urges the opening member 40 toward a rear face of the housing 22. In this manner, the spring 35 applies a compressive force, for example, as applied to the opening member 40. Thus, as the stowage bin door 13 moves between the open and closed positions, a moment arm of the spring 35 changes proportionally to the gravitational torque applied by the stowage bin door 13, where the compressive forces applied by the spring 35 variably adjust as the opening aperture 41 allows the biasing device 31 to adjust its position to, in part, align with, and counteract the gravitational torque.

As described above, the hinge assembly 14 b is a mirror image of the hinge assembly 14 a and includes similar components, including a self-opening mechanism 24′ and a damper 26′. For example, FIG. 9 illustrates the hinge assembly 14 b coupled to the partition 19 via an attaching plate 68. The self-opening mechanism 24′ is synchronized with the self-opening mechanism 24, and also includes a rotary crank 30′, a biasing device 31′, and rotary pin 32′. The rotary crank 30′ includes a pivot pin aperture 33′ which is sized and shaped to pivotably couple the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 to the stowage bin door 13. For example, in some implementations, the stowage bin door 13 can be coupled to the hinge assembly 14 b via a pivot pin that is pivotably received in the pivot pin aperture 33′. More particularly, the pivot pin aperture 33′ defines the pivot axis 29′ about which the stowage bin door 13 pivotably rotates between open and closed positions. The biasing device 31′ includes a first connecting element 34′, a spring 35′, e.g., a compression spring, and a second connecting element 36′. One end of the spring 35′ is coupled to the first connecting element 34′, and the other end of the spring 35′ is coupled to the second connecting element 36′. The first connecting element 34′ includes a shaft that extends through the spring 35 and is coupled to the partition 19 via a first pin 38′. The second connecting element 36′ is coupled to the partition 19 via the rotary pin 32′. The rotary pin 32′ also couples the biasing device 31′ to the rotary crank 30′ via the rotary pin 32′.

In particular, the rotary crank 30′ includes an opening member 40′ that includes an opening aperture 41′ that is shaped like a slot. As described above, the opening aperture 41′ receives the rotary pin 32′ and is sized and shaped to allow the rotary crank 30′ to rotatably move therein as the spring 35′ urges the opening member 40′ toward a rear of the partition 19. In this manner, the spring 35′ applies a compressive force, for example, as applied to the opening member 40′. Thus, as the stowage bin door 13 moves between the open and closed positions, a moment arm of the spring 35′ changes proportionally to the gravitational torque applied by the stowage bin door 13, where the compressive forces applied by the spring 35′ variably adjust as the opening aperture 41′ allows the biasing device 31′ to adjust its position to, in part, align with, and counteract the gravitational torque.

The integrated stowage bin assembly 10 includes one or more alignment features that allow the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 to be positionally moveable during assembly. For example, the coupling flange 28 includes at least one or more door coupling apertures 46 that are shaped like a slot to allow alignment of the integrated stowage bin assembly 10 in a first direction when coupled to the stowage bin door 13 or other surrounding structure, such as fuselage body components. For example, as described above, the optional support plate 23 includes hinge apertures 55 that are shaped as slots to allow some positional movement of the hinge assembly 14 a in a second direction when coupling to the hinge assembly 14 a via hinge fasteners 56 or other surrounding structure, such as fuselage body components. For example, the second connecting element 36 includes an alignment screw 48 that allows for angular positioning adjustment of the hinge assembly 14 a, 14 b when or during coupling to the stowage bin door 13 or other surrounding structure, such as fuselage body components.

FIGS. 11 to 13 illustrate an integrated stowage bin assembly 100, according to another example embodiment. The integrated stowage bin assembly 100 includes a bin bucket assembly 120 and a pair of hinge assemblies 140 a, 140 b. In contrast to the integrated stowage bin assembly 10, the integrated stowage bin assembly 100 does not include a partition 19. In general, the bin bucket assembly 120 is hingedly coupled to a stowage bin door 130 via the hinge assemblies 140 a, 140 b. In this manner, as illustrated in FIG. 13, the stowage bin door 130 is moveable between open and closed positions. For example, FIG. 13 illustrates a closed position of the stowage bin door 130 and an open position illustrated in phantom lines. The bin bucket assembly 120 includes a pair of sidewalls 150, lower wall 170, a rear wall 180, and optionally an upper wall that is not shown for the sake of clarity of illustration and description.

Each hinge assembly 140 a, 140 b is a mirror image of the other and is coupled to corresponding sidewalls 150 of the bin bucket assembly 120. In particular, each sidewall 150 includes a notch 200 that is sized and shaped to receive the corresponding hinge assembly 140 a, 140 b. Again, integrating the hinge assembly 140 a, 140 b in this manner reduces the protrusion of the hinge assemblies 140 a, 140 b. For the sake of clarity of description and illustration, the hinge assembly 140 a will be described in further detail, although it should be understood, upon review of the present disclosure, that the other hinge assembly 140 b includes similar features.

The hinge assembly 140 a includes a housing 220 that houses various mechanisms, including a self-opening mechanism that counteracts the gravitational torque, and a damper(s) that controls the rate of pivotable movement of the stowage bin door 130. The housing 220 includes a coupling flange 280 that fixedly couples the integrated stowage bin assembly 100 to the stowage bin door 130, such that the stowage bin door 130 can rotate between open and closed positions. The hinge assembly 140 a is received in the notch 200 and is secured to the sidewall 150 via support plates 151, 152. For example, FIG. 13 is a partially exploded view that illustrates the support plate 152 removed from the hinge assembly 140 a. Again, the housing 220 includes a pivot pin aperture 133 that defines a pivot axis 129 about which the stowage bin door 130 pivotably rotates between open and closed positions.

The various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments.

These and other changes can be made to the embodiments in light of the above-detailed description. In general, in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed to limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims, but should be construed to include all possible embodiments along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claims are not limited by the disclosure. 

The invention claimed is:
 1. A stowage bin assembly comprising: a bin bucket assembly including a bin bucket having at least one sidewall, the at least one sidewall including a notch, the at least one sidewall having an interior surface; at least one hinge assembly having a housing which is received in the notch, the housing having an interior surface, the interior surface of the housing being flush with the interior surface of the at least one sidewall when the housing of the at least one hinge assembly is received in the notch; and a stowage bin door pivotably coupled to the bin bucket assembly via the at least one hinge assembly, the stowage bin door moveable between an open position and a closed position.
 2. The stowage bin assembly of claim 1 wherein the at least one hinge assembly includes a self-opening mechanism.
 3. The stowage bin assembly of claim 2 wherein the self-opening mechanism includes: a rotary crank having a pivot pin aperture, a center of which defines a pivot axis; and a pivot pin received in the pivot pin aperture, the pivot pin sized and shaped to pivotably couple the at least one hinge assembly to the stowage bin door.
 4. The stowage bin assembly of claim 3 wherein the self-opening mechanism includes: an opening aperture disposed in the rotary crank; and a rotary pin received in the opening aperture, the rotary pin configured to allow the rotary crank to rotatably move in the opening aperture to counteract gravitational torque when the stowage bin door moves between the open position and the closed position.
 5. The stowage bin assembly of claim 4 wherein the self-opening mechanism includes: a biasing device coupled to the rotary crank, the biasing device applying a force that counteracts the gravitation torque when the stowage bin door moves between the open and closed positions.
 6. The hinge assembly of claim 2 wherein the self-opening mechanism includes a biasing device which is directly coupled to a rotary pin, and the rotary pin pivotably coupling the biasing device to a rotary crank.
 7. The stowage bin assembly of claim 1, further comprising: a damper positioned in the housing, the damper sized and shaped to control a rate of pivotable movement of the stowage bin door between the open and closed positions.
 8. The stowage bin assembly of claim 1, further comprising: one or more alignment features.
 9. The stowage bin assembly of claim 8 wherein the one or more alignment features include one or more slots disposed in a coupling flange of the housing, the coupling flange fixedly coupleable to the stowage bin door.
 10. The stowage bin assembly of claim 1, further comprising: a support plate sized and shaped to fixedly couple the housing to the at least one sidewall.
 11. The stowage bin assembly of claim 10 wherein the support plate includes one or more alignment features.
 12. A hinge assembly that pivotably couples a stowage bin door to a stowage bin bucket assembly, the hinge assembly comprising: a housing; a housing cover plate that couples to the housing, an interior cavity disposed between the housing and the housing cover plate; and a self-opening mechanism disposed in the interior cavity, the self-opening mechanism including: a rotary crank having an opening aperture; a rotary pin received in the opening aperture; and a biasing device directly coupled to the rotary pin, the biasing device urging the rotary crank to move about the rotary pin within the opening aperture to counteract a gravitational torque applied by the stowage bin door when the stowage bin door moves between an open position and a closed position.
 13. The hinge assembly of claim 12 wherein the rotary crank includes an opening member which has the opening aperture.
 14. The hinge assembly of claim 12, further comprising: a damper positioned in the interior cavity, the damper sized and shaped to control a rate of pivotable movement of the stowage bin door between the open and closed positions.
 15. The hinge assembly of claim 12, further comprising: one or more alignment features.
 16. The hinge assembly of claim 15 wherein the one or more alignment features include at least one of: one or more slots located in a coupling flange of the housing; and one or more slots located in a support plate sized and shaped to fixedly couple the housing to a sidewall of the stowage bin bucket assembly.
 17. The hinge assembly of claim 12 wherein the biasing device includes a first member, a second member directly coupled to the rotary pin, and a spring coupled to the first and second members. 